jenna: clint is sitting there. jon: you're not going to see him because he's wearing the forever lazy. jenna: they wanted everybody. jon: merry christmas everybody,. jenna: "america live" starts right now. >> reporter: fox news alert for you on new reaction to a deal closing one of the year's most contentious battles on capitol hill. president obama set to address the passage of the payroll tax extension bill today. the house and senate passing a two month tax cut extension. welcome to "america live," i' i'm heather child ress. rick: i'm rick folbaum. >> this is a good christmas

present, a request kuansi president. we intend to do this in a constructive bi-partisan fashion. >> it's hard to tkotd right thing, sometimes it's politically difficult to do the right thing. when everybody called for a one-year extension of the payroll tax deduction, when everybody wanted a full year of extended unemployment benefits, we were here fighting for the right things. may not have been politically the smartest thing in the world, but i'm going to tell you what, i think our members waged a good fight. >> reporter: ed henry is at the white house with more reaction for us,. >> reporter: speaker john boehner there trying to make the point that they got a little bit of a fix in this bill to address concerns republicans had said that a two month payroll

extension would call paperwork problems for small bases. senate democrats have now appointed conferees to the committee that will workout differences with the house republicans on a longer term, a one-year payroll tax extension and a long term extension of unemployment benefit. the keystone pipeline is wrapped up in this. they had won a victory earlier in the debate to demand that the president make a decision, yes or no on the keystone pipeline that would run from canada down to texas within 60 days of signing this into law. that will now be in this deal as well. nonetheless as you hear from steny hoyer the white house wants to focus and say this is a victory for the american people. they see this as a political victory. they said this is the case where you had the senate republican lead dear mitch ma'am colonel

working on a compromise and it was house republicans like john boehner who in the estimation of the white house was out on a limb. they want to take the case to voters in 2012, while washington may be broke inch and dysfunctional, and the president is no longer the change agent as seen at the time of his election. they want to say that he was reaching across the aisle working with the republicans, in the senate even if house republicans didn't want to work with him. the president was supposed to speak at 12:15 eastern. as you can tell behind me he's still not here. we had heard that house speaker john boehner had actually signed this bill, was heading over to senate majority harry reid. they have to go through some more process. perhaps, i stress perhaps they are waiting for the bill to arrive so the president can sign it before heading to hawaii. >> reporter: we will take the president live as soon as he appears there at that podium, don't war brie that. the extension of the payroll tax

cut is being felt in a big way by at least one group who employs so many americans. what it all means for small business franchise. we'll have that for you coming up a little bit later on "america live." greg: fox news alert, and in a poll just out a little more than an hour ago ron paul is -- he's the leader of the pack among likely iowa republican caucus goers. that is a first for congressman paul. they are putting paul out front with 21%. close behind mitt romney at 20%. inside the poll's margin of error by the way followed by former house speaker newt gingrich who comes in at 19%. >> so today, i as an individual am going to endorse rick santorum. i'm going to mobilize whatever resources i have at my disposal to advocate for him.

rick: former senator rick santorum picking up two key endorsements. you heard from bob vanderplatz from the christian group. and they are saying he has the possibility of being the dark horse in this case. we are please towed welcome rick santorum on "america live." it was a pretty good week for you from a prompt nat talk show host in iowa endorsement. where do you need to finish on january 3rd in order for you to continue your campaign? >> when the polls have had us dead last and we really haven't had a whole lot of media attention on our campaign. the fact that we are in the mix right now and most of the polls have us in double digits for the first time 10% or so, in either

event we're moving up. our momentum is strong. sam clo sreurbgs s is a great talk show host in northwest i what. we picked up key pastors. these are all strong leaders in the social conservative movement as well as just conservatives generally. this is why we feel good that we're going to be the dark horse in this case. we are the one that has the right message, right background. we are the one that can strike the greatest contrast between barack obama and actually make barack obama and his record the issue in this campaign, not the candidate that the republicans nominate. we've got a strong, consistent record. >> reporter: your campaign is blanketing the airwaves in iowa with a brand-new ad that shows off your beautiful family. we'll put it up on the screen here while we chat about this. i'm just wopbgd wondering, as you go out and campaign -- i think it's fair to say that no one has spent more time and effort in iowa than you have, do

you ever look in the mirror and say, why am i not breaking through here? >> well i think u know, we were the sort of slow and steady. i'm the guy at the dance hall and the girls come in and they walk right by and particular a turn or two with the better looking guys, at the end of the evening it's the guy, sort of steady eddy is the guy you want to bring home to mom and dad. that's what you're seeing in iowa. guys are looking at the guy you see on the flip clip right there. he has strong values, trustworthy. he has a consistent rofrd being a conservative. he's won in the swing states. he's taken on and beaten democratic opponents which no one has done in this race. that's why i think we are picking up the momentum. we haven't got even a lot of national attention or in the debates but the people of eye what are taking this very seriously and i think they like what they see. 349 town hall meetings which is what we've done in iowa is

paying off for us. rick: don't be so modest, the sweater is very nice. >> thank you. >> reporter: i spoke with rich lowry, a fox news contributor anded do tore of the national review. i asked him a question. i'd like you to listen to the question and response. >> your magazine has been criticized for not endorsing anyone. do you want to take care of that for us now. >> no. i think it's a very weak field. i think it's much easier to say negative things about the field than positive things. rick: how come a lot of conservatives around the country have not really thrown their full support behind any of the candidates? >> i disagree with rich. i like rich, he's a nice man, but i don't think it's a weak field. i think we have a lot of very good people. sure, a lot of folks, as we've seen in these commercials and in the debates, a fair amount of

baggage, been inconsistent on issues, have personal issues that make it difficult. again, one of the reasons we feel very strongly that we are the best alternative, we've got that strong consistent record. we've got a bold plan for $5 trillion in deficit reduction and cuts in the next five years. we have a bold tax plan that includes eliminating the corporate tax for manufacturers to get blue collar and small-town jobs back to mesh. we feel that that message, and the strong consistent message that i've had in 16 years in public live in leading and winning debates here in washington, you know, shaking up the place. we have been a force for change here in washington d.c., and that is now being paid attention to in iowa and i think it will be paid attention to as this campaign goes along. rick: last question, sir. obviously in order to win the nomination you have to win these caucuses and primaries. if you're going to win a general election, you've got to win over independent voters.

do you consider yourself within the mainstream that your views would be appealing to independent voters out there, some of whom might not agree with some of your more socially conservative viewpoints. how do you win those independent voters out there? >> just look at my record. i won pennsylvania. pennsylvania hasn't elected a republican for president since 1988, and i won two elections, one beating a democratic incumbent that was in 94 when only two people defeated democratic incumbents. and in 2000 george bush lost the state to al gore. and i won six. they know i'm out here telling the truth. i'm not going to change who i am. i'm not going to say one thing and do something else. there is an authenticity where they say, you know what i don't necessarily agree with him, but he's going to look hard at the

situation, and make the right decision. and i trust that he's going to do what is right and not for some other agenda. he's not playing games. he's going to do what is in his heart. i think that wins a lot of independent voters and a lot of conservative democrats who voted for us in pennsylvania, and i think they will in iowa, michigan and a lot of other states. rick: thanks so much for your time today. our best wishes to you and your family for a very merry christmas. >> merry christmas to everybody out there. god bless. >> reporter: michelle bachmann hitting the campaign trail in iowa today. the presidential candidate meeting with supporters all across the state. a campaign stop yesterday is getting a whole lot of attention today. that's because hecklers interrupted bachmann at an event at the hamburg inn, a popular stop for all the candidates. take a listen to what happened. [chanting] >> reporter: the restaurant's manager says that the

campaign -- they tried to blair christmas songs over a sound system to drown out the protestors. police arrived and no one was arrested. rick: hreurt hrert now on fox news alert on a holiday frenzy that has resulted in some stap stampedes, gunshots, a mad rush of customers squeezing themselves through store doors at a mall in indianapolis. hundreds of holiday shoppers fighting to get their hands on the new sneakers. they sell for $180 a pop. this is one location. coming up we'll show you places where violence broke out overnight at other stores across the country. we are getting reports that shoppers have been kicking in store windows at one place. and police were using pepper spray on crowds at another location. we'll have more of this as it comes into the newsroom.

>> reporter: the "wall street journal" raising new questions about about what attorney general eric holder is suddenly railing event, voting laws coast to coast. we'll take a closer look at that. rick: a new weather warning for all you holiday travelers out there. coming up the latest forecast for what it's going to be on the roads and in the air for anyone trying to travel somewhere on this holiday weekend. >> it happened so fast i didn't have time to get off the bobcat. it blue three trees down, hit my house. it just blew them down just -- not as big as this one, they are probably half as big as the branches you see there, and i didn't even have time to get in the garage. they were just -- it was ugly. es as a heart attack. the doctor leaned over and said to me, "you just beat the widow-maker." i was put on an aspirin, and it's part of my regimen now. [ male announcer ] be sure to talk to your doctor before you begin an aspirin regimen. go see your doctor now.

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rick: that is the white house. we are expecting to hear from the president any moment now. he'll be speaking for the first time after both the house and senate passed that two-month extension of the pa payroll tax cut. then he's off to hawaii. we'll take you to the white house as soon as the president starts speaking. >> reporter: we are getting reaction to the payroll tax cut from owners of franchises. they employ so much much the labor force and they are already under the gun in tough economic times, so whenever lawmakers tinker with the economy, the small business owners feel the impact firsthand. steven caldara is the ceo of the international fran size

association and he joins us live. >> thank for having me. happy holidays. >> reporter: you were listening intently to the back and forth going on for weeks especially yesterday. give me your immediate response to this payroll tax extension and what it means to franchise business owners specifically. >> clearly the extension is a positive development that creates certainty for small business owners and consumers. clearly if consumers have more discretionary income then it will help franchise businesses, as well as businesses in general. but it's a band-aid approach and what small business owners really need is long term comprehensive tax reform, lower rates at both the corporate and individual levels. >> reporter: we are talking about 750,000 franchises. it's a 44 440 bon kwropb dollars industry employing 8 million people. affecting families firsthand. >> absolutely, when we are still struggling through a bad climate

this is critical. we finished our 2012 forecast which was presented dated on the payroll tax holiday being extended and that forecast calls for 2.1% growth in terms of jobs, 168,000 new jobs in 2012. 14,000 new establishments. so clearly we are not at pre recession levels but it's a step in the right direction, and so having the payroll tax holiday extended was a key component of that. so we're grateful for it, but at end of the day what small business owners really need is that long term tax certainty that is going to give them the ability and the confidence, quite frankly, to make their hiring plans and create jobs, which is what we do in franchising. 64% of all new net jobs come from the small business community. >> reporter: there was a survey that was done recently and it said that some 80% of franchise owners, they view the healthcare

reform law as a negative. that is also affecting your industry. >> absolutely. it really disinch seven ta vices the multieuners and owners to getting to that 50 full time employee mark, because they'll have to either pay for the full boat on the health shaourpbs or pay the $2,000 penalty. it's a critical component. and we are still working through a tough regulatory environment. credit access remains the number one issue in our industry, alongside comprehensive tax reform and healthcare. you put these things together in this economy, a public policy environment and it's really not a prescription for strong business health moving forward. >> reporter: thank you so much. we appreciate you joining us, steven caldara. once again we are waiting for the president to speak. steven, i know that you will be listen as well. as soon as he appears there at that podium we will take it for you live. thank you very much, steven.

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heather: new developments right now that you need to know about on a baby formula scare that is frightening doctors and parents of course all across the country. we are getting word that several more national retailers have joined wal-mart stores incorporated in pulling a batch of poud erred infant formula from their shelves, after a missouri newborn who consumed it

apparently died of a rare bacterial infection. listen up, officials at super value, walgreen, kroger and safe way said friday they have removed fans of enfamil newborn. with the lot cp1k7g. next hour dr. manny alvarez joins us with what you need to know. stay tuned. rick: a pair of homicide car bombings targeted heavily guarded intelligence buildings killing more than 40 people, a hundred wounded. leland vitter has the latest. >> reporter: the latest information we are getting is from syrian state television which you can't always count on as being truthful since they won't allow foreign journalists inside that country. they put the death toll above 40. and say one of the car bombs was

450 pounds. debris littered the streets of an upscale damascus neighborhood while rescue workers cleared dozens of bodies. syrian state tv said dozens were killed in the eye tack for which the government blamed al-qaida. the blast came hours after a group of observers went to stop the military crack town. rick: fox news alert here is the president. >> it was critical that congress not go home. i'm please towed say that the pleased to say they've got it done. i want to thank all the members of congress for ending the stalemate and making this happen. because of this agreement every working american will keep their tax cut, about a thousand dollars for a typical family and that translates into an extra $40 or so in every paycheck.

vital unemployment insurance will continue for millions of americans who are looking for work. and when congress returns, i urge them to keep working without drama, without delay to reach an agreement that extends this tax cut, as well as unemployment insurance through all of 2012. last week i said that this should be a formality, and that is still the case. so let's make sure that we extend this tax break and unemployment insurance for a full year, for our families, but also for our economy. it's the right thing to do because more money spent by more persons means more businesses hiring more workers, and that is a boost for everybody, and it's a boost that we very much need right now. finally, i want to take a moment to thank my fellow americans sore bringing theifor bringing their voices to this debate. i met with several here at the white house yesterday. i really think it takes courage to believe that your voice can

make a difference, and i promise you, the american people, your voices made a difference on this debate, whether you tweeted, or called, or wrote, you reminded people in this town what this debate and what all of our debates should be about. it's about you. it's about your lives, it's about your families. you didn't send us to this town to play partisan games and to see who is up and who is down. you sent us here to serve and make your lives a little bit better, to do what's right. and fortunately that's how this weekended. so this is some good news just in the nick of time for the holidays. i do want to be clear, though, we have a lot more work to do. this continues to be a make-or-break moment for the middle class in this country, and we're going to have to roll up our sleeves together, democrats and republicans to make sure that the economy is growing and to make sure that

more jobs are created. we've got an economy that is showing some positive signs. we've seen many consecutive months of private sector job growth, but it's not happening as fast as it needs to, and that means that we've got to redouble our efforts, working together. it also means that we've got to make sure we're rebuilding an economy where if you work hard that work will be rewarded. the kind of economy where everyone is doing their fair share and everybody plays by the same set of rules, everybody has a fair chance and everybody is acting responsibly, including those of us here in washington. so there are going to be some important debates next year, some tough fights i'm sure in the years to come, but that is the kind of country that i'm fighting for, one where everybody has a fair chance afternoon is doing their fair chair. that's the kind of country that i think the american people deserve, and the kind of country that american people want. so i want to wish everybody a

merry christmas, happy holidays, a happy new year to you and your families, and that includes everybody here in the press corp., i know you guys have been working hard and your families will be happy to spend a little more time with you over the next few days. i also want to make sure to send the warmest holiday wishess to all the men and women in uniform who are serving oversees righ overseas right now and may not have a chance to see their families over the holiday season. we are grateful for everything you do. thank you, guys. aloha. rick: president obama is off to hawaii for a little holiday vacation with his family. he goes there with some political momentum as well after the house and senate passing the two-month extension east wished on the payroll tax cut holiday. of course part of the deal there was for both sides to get back to the negotiating table to try to workout a one-year extension, and that will happen right after

the new year. president obama with what a lot of people are calling a political victoria tree. and we'll be talking with karl rove coming up live in a couple of minutes about how big of a victory this might be for the president. that is straight ahead. heather: just ahead, we also have new video, this is disturbing. just coming in, the mall violence that apparently is breaking out as new nike sneakers go on sale. three minutes to that. rick: the "wall street journal" raising new questions today about what attorney general eric holder is railing against, voting laws coast to coast. we'll take a closer look at that. heather: plus, millions of americans, they are about to hit the road headed home for christmas. aren't they lucky. we'll take a look at what you might expect this holiday travel season. ♪

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rick: fox news alert now and more video over the chaos from the sale of those nike sneakers, this time the scene is stockton, california. shoppers almost crushed trying to get into a store selling the rerelease of nike air jordans, and then there is this, fists flying between two women at a store in north carolina. we're hearing reports of customers smashing windows at other locations, out of control crowds going nuts over the rerelease of nike's air jordan shoe line. gunshots were fired at another store. we'll have more on this as it comes in. heather: well, new video of a brazen group of suspected shoplifters clearing out a toy store. hawaiian police are searching for the s.s seen here, but this seen is playing out all across the country.

retailers expected to lose nearly $2 billion to theft in just the four weeks leading up to christmas, and that is not good news for honest shoppers. fox business network's adam shapiro is live in our new york city newsroom. hi, adam, first of all. talk about naughty. >> reporter: naughty and not nice. this is what some people call the five-finger discount. people who shoplift. and the center for retail research, they're actually out of the united kingdom, and they look at shoplifting not only in the united states, but on a global perspective. and what they're telling us is that the amount of goods that will be lift with the that illegal discount from shelves this year is, as you said, going to be almost $2 billion. the exact figure, $1.8 billion. and if you think this is a harmless crime, retailers pass that cost on to you and me. they have to raise their prices on other goods to cover the losses. now, worldwide for the whole year shoplifting's going to cost about $119 billion, but there's some interesting statistics behind this. shoplifting, some people say it's because the economy is bad.

other experts say the economy never an excuse, that this is a crime of opportunity. shoplifters see the chance to get away with something, and there's a thrill for it, and they do it. 75% of shoplifters according to the center for retail research are adults, not teenagers, not kids, adults, and it breaks down evenly between men and women who, obviously, see an opportunity to do something very naughty. heather? heather: yeah. tough economic times, yes, i'll give you that, but like you said, in the end it costs all of us a little bit more. thank you very much, adam. >> reporter: take care. rick: well, "the wall street journal" editorial board is raising questions, new ones today, about why the attorney general, eric holder, is suddenly railing against voting laws from coast to coast, especially since some of those laws have already been upheld by the courts. alan colmes is the host of the alan colmes show, mike gallagher is a syndicated radio talk show host and, gentlemen, always good to talk to both of you. thanks very much for being here right before the christmas holiday. alan, is this really a national

crisis that the attorney general needs to involve himself in? >> el, yes, you have an 83-year-old woman in wisconsin who's voted all her life, but now they're asking for a birth certificate she can't find, and it's going to cost her $200 in order to do it, or people who live so far away from the motor vehicles department that it's a burden for them to actually go. i'd like to know why it is democrats always seem to want to fight for voter enfranchisement, republicans for voter disenfranchisement. there's a piece in the journal today in which the real issue is whether or not we want to expand voting rights or contract them, and what is the political motivation from those who want to contract the voting rights? why are they doing that? >> wow. is this about politics, mike galler if? >> wow. let me tell you something, the argument that voter id laws are somehow disenfranchisement is one of the dishonest arguments from the left, right up there with how the occupy wall street crowd is a noble bunch of

patriots. >> that's true too. they are. >> of course it is, alan. just this week in south carolina they discovered 207,000 people who were registered to vote who were either dead, who lived in other states, who let their ids expire. let me tell you something, the attorney general's on the side of corruption, alan, you're on the side of corruption and fraud -- [inaudible conversations] common sense conservativism. excuse me, common sense conservativism should tell you, you should even rub off on this a little bit, alan. you found one 83-year-old lady in wisconsin? who doesn't have a photo id in 2011? come on, alan. >> i'm sorry that you want to make it personal and accuse me of somehow being dishonest or have a dishonest argument. i'm sorry that you feel you want to take to it that level, mike, but it's about voter franchisement. and i'm surprised you as a conservative want more laws. we need voter id laws when

things work just fine. if we know that people are voting illegally like they have in the cases you mentioned, then that should be stopped, and the law should be applied what we need to do is insure that everybody has access to the polls and not have what is similar to the effect of a poll tax like we had -- >> alan, you've got to tell me, you've got to tell me, and it's not personal. this is a position you're voicing that democrats, like eric holder, embrace. it's not personal, it's just absolute -- >> right. well, eric holder -- >> i mean, honestly, alan, what are you afraid of? to have people have to do the same thing they do to get on an airplane, cast a vote. >> the republicans need to ask themselves what are they afraid of that people are enfranchised to vote -- rick: alan, let me jump in here a second. i could just sit back and listen all afternoon. [laughter] the fact that the attorney general is involving himself in what is really, there's so much politics involved with this. the attorney general, this is not his area. >> of course it is.

what do you mean it's not his area? it's not the area of the attorney general to make sure the laws are enforced? are you kidding me? how can you possibly say that? >> no, he's right because the attorney general should be looking at, he's the chief law enforcement officer -- >> that's right. >> -- of the country. >> that's exactly right. >> you think the 83-year-old woman who feels disenfranchised needs to be helped by the attorney general? >> i gave you an anecdote that applies to many, many more people around the country who will have their voting opportunities taken away from them. what is the real goal? i want to get this question answered, what is the real goal of disenfranchising people? >> i can answer -- >> negatively effect blacks -- rick: we need to try to get the answer to this because i think it's a good question. that minorities are hit harder than other groups when it comes to the mandate to provide what they might not have, like for a driver's license, for example. >> that is -- and, of course, that is such a patronizing

position that minorities and old people are too, they're too addled to be able -- >> no, it's the poor, mike. >> oh, the poor? what does it cost to -- listen, but these are people clamoring for the right to vote, alan -- >> yes, that's right. clamoring for the right to vote. you're making them jump through conditional hoops that's tantamount to a poll tax. >> oh, jim crow. here we go. rick: what if we give out a voter id card for free where they don't have to go and get a driver's license, everybody gets a card. >> well, that's fine, but they're not doing that. [inaudible conversations] >> are you kidding me? if all we're asking is that people who want to vote are who they say they are. i'll give you the answer to the question asked. eric holder and the democrats are on the side of voter corruption. they want dead people to vote because they desperately need all the help they can get. [laughter] >> over the top --

>> what else could it be? rick: on that happy note right before christmas, i need to wish you both happy holidays. >> merry christmas to both of you. >> happy hanukkah and merry christmas. rick: see ya. >> all right, guys, take care. heather: well, karl rove this week encouraged republicans to do a deal on extending the tax cuts, so now that it is done, a done deal, what does he say to those who are calling this a big win for president obama? we will ask him when he joins us in about 15 minutes. rick: also, new details on a story developing across the country we've been telling you about. more stores pulling a popular baby formula after one infant has died. there is no true connection yet, they haven't been able to show that the formula was to blame, but dr. manny alvarez will join us ahead. heather: yeah, parents need to hear about that. plus, the great christmas getaway. millions of travelers hitting the road for the holiday. the outlook for your travel up next. ♪ [ male announcer ] the more you lose, the more you lose,

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rick: are you traveling today or tomorrow? then you're going to need to hear this, because there is some weather moving its way heading into some of the busiest travel days of the year. a winter blast in the southwest shutting down major airports, forcing airports to cancel flights home for the holidays. rick reichmuth live in the fox weather center. i thought there wasn't going to be crazy weather, rick? >> reporter: well, it's really not, to be honest with you. rick: are we blowing this out of proportion? >> reporter: well, i mean, albuquerque, but that's not an airport that's going to cause big delays. you know, you don't want to see problems in atlanta or chicago or the new york airports or d.c. those airports are all fine. newark has about a one hour delay because of wind and philadelphia about 15 minutes, and that's it. so airports are looking good. rick: what are we talking to you

for? i'm joking. >> jr. well, you know, everybody wants to know. last christmas we had that big blizzard across the northeast, you remember? rick: yes, i do. of course. >> reporter: not the case. 47 degrees in new york. it's 79 degrees in tampa. that's what's going on. the big story is we had the storm that moves through last night, that's gone. we had the severe weather yesterday in the southeast, that's gone. so you've got to go to mexico or el paso or new mexico to get any kind of snow, and that's where the weather's going to be. we have winter storm warnings here across parts of new mexico for today. by tomorrow that all moves in over towards parts of texas, so a bit of a white christmas in places like midland. and i tell you what, if you live in texas, probably the best christmas gift you could get would be a little bit of rain and precipitation, and that's the only place that's going to have it for the next couple days. rick: thank you, rick. always nice to see you. heather: it's always nice to

have good news. rick: absolutely. roett. heather: so what can you expect as you plan your trip? contributing editor of travelocity. so, melissa, good news weather wise. what about delays that people are going to experience at the airport? because no matter what there will be those to deal with. >> there's going to be delays because there's so many people traveling right now. we're seeing totally full airplanes, totally full airports. so you want to give yourself plenty of time when you're getting to the airport, about 90 minutes from the curb to the gate isn't too much to make sure that you can get through security without a problem. heather: so just do a little extra reading if you get to the gate early. >> absolutely. heather: what about tips for how to travel in terms of packing to beat the holiday rush? >> sure. so if you're deciding in advance that you're going to check your bags, you want to make sure that in your carry on you have anything that you can't live without if you get delayed. and we don't want you to be delayed, but there's a chance you might experience some of

that during the holidays. so we're talking about medication, eyeglasses, anything that your children need you want to make sure you have with you, but also things like your cell phone charger, your dvd charger. you don't want to be stuck without your electronics for an extended period, especially your cell phone. that way if you're going to be able to call your airline for help. so that's a great thing to keep with you all the time. heather: you know, i always remember my cell phone, i never remember my charger. so it doesn't do me a whole lot of good. i always have to buy a new one. and what if, you mentioned there will be the abnormal, you know, cancellations, delays. how do travelers best deal with that? >> well, you want to start traveling before you ever leave home. check online before you head to the airport with your carrier, find out if there's delays. you can deal with them from the comfort of your own couch before you ever go to the airport. so you're going to want to maybe change your seat, not go as early, but also you can check in for your flight, you can get

your boarding pass, you can get an assigned seat because sometimes the last person to check in is the first person to get bumped from a totally full flight. so you want to take care of that 24 hours in advance if you want. and you can even pay for your bags before you ever go to the airport. heather: so plan ahead and pack light. thank you very much, melissa, joining us from travelocity. >> happy travels. heather: yes, you too. rick: speaking of traveling and planning, just eight days until new year's. fox news planning a star-studded affair live from times square. megyn kelly and bill hemmer hosting the all-american new year with some great guests too. trace adkins and big and rich along with the cast of the tony award-nominated show "rock of ages." it all starts at 11 eastern time on the fox news channel, and there's background on all of our great guests. heather: i'm a country music girl, so trace adkins, that excites me. we've been following this story for you, crushing crude

and a shooting frenzy over a pair of shoes? that's right. reports of chaos across the country over a new style of sneakers. rick: and an amazing gift for a true american hero when we come right back. [applause] [ woman ] ♪ what i want this season ♪ if you'd like to try and guess ♪ ♪ it is something very special ♪ i would readily confess [ dogs barking ] ♪ 'cause all i want this season ♪ ♪ is something from your heart ♪ la da da, la da da [ male announcer ] thinking of others this holiday season, travelers.

rick: well, an emotional homecoming and a special gift for a severely injured iraq war veteran. building homes for heros doing their small part to try to repay this warrior for his sacrifice. ainslee earhart has more. >> reporter: hi, thanks, rick. just a few days before coming home from iraq, his humvee was hit by five rockets. everyone in that suv was killed except for joel, and after four years in the hospital, 75 surgeries, this hero finally has

a place he can call home. a true hero's homecoming. from the daughters of the -- doors of the hospital, joel and his parents are met by a caravan of police officers, fire trucks, military vehicles and veterans. bag pipers escort them through his new neighborhood where more than a thousand members of the community are waiting. >> there is no finer example of courage and commitment and selfless service and dedication. >> he asked me, what do you want, joel? i want to be in a private, gated community, and i'd like to have a therapy pool in the backyard. >> reporter: and from the first scoop of dirt to the last coat of paint, they didn't stop. >> took us five months to build this home from beginning to end. >> reporter: working constantly. >> oh, yeah. every day. yeah, we don't miss a day. to us, veterans day is 3 of 5 days out of the year. -- 365 days out of the year. >> reporter: the result is a brand new home especially designed for joel and his injuries. >> started about a year ago

raising the funds, 4200 square feet, and it's beautiful. >> earlier i was referenced as to a hero, but i don't really look at it that way. i signed up to do my job. i got hurt. i managed to survive. [applause] >> aye known that man for -- i've known that man for a year and a half. i've never one time heard him complain about anything. >> y'all think i'm, like, cool and stuff because y'all don't see me on my bad days. >> reporter: do you have bad days? >> we're all human. i mean, i'm not perfect. no one's perfect. >> reporter: he has a perfect attitude though. for more on this touching story and what the sergeant has overcome, tune in to a hannity holiday special tonight at 9 p.m. back to you, rick. rick: all right. we'll be watching. thanks so much for sharing that story with us. >> reporter: sure. heather: we'll definitely tune in for that one. quick update, we have got video in just three minute prosecution that incident we've been telling you about where shots were fired when a nike sale got out of hand at a mall. rick: and as the holiday shopping season come toss a close, we've got some brand new

numbers on the economy that may raise concerns as we head into the new year. heather: and karl rove. this week he encouraged republicans to do a deal on extending the tax caughts -- cuts, so what does he have to say about the big win? we'll ask him when he joins us, up next. ♪ you want to save money on rv insurance? no problem. you want to save money on motorcycle insurance? no problem. you want to find a place to park all these things? fuggedaboud it. this is new york. hey little guy, wake up! aw, come off it mate! geico. saving people money on more than just car insurance.

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rick: fox news alert, black friday the sequel. just hours before christmas when a sneakers sale leads to chaos across the country. take a look at the pushing, the pepper spray, the brawls, even gunfire erupting as customers coast to coast scramble for the brand-new nike air jordan sneakers. now, several people are under arrest after half a dozen incidents. it's a brand-new hour of "america live." i'm rick folbaum. heather: i'm heather childress.

rick: those who scored a pair of the 180-dollar shoes says the madness was well worth it. >> it's ridiculous out here. the line is crazy, that way, this way. jordans 11, they came out not since 1996. everybody is trying to get them. everybody needs to scoot back so i can get my jordans. rick: rick leventhal joining us more with more on this. >> reporter: it seems appropriate that the latest item to spur fighting inside and outside stores is a pair of basketball shoes, and this is way beyond pushing and shoving, as you mentioned with pepper spray, gunfire and numerous arrests coast to coast. take another look at the video from indianapolis where a crowd, hundreds strong, gathered before dawn at the lafayette square mall waiting for hours before pushing and shoving their ways through the doors. you see one of them broken there. pulled off the hinges.

some customers were traepld as thewere tram trampe led. in richmond, california, shots were heard outside a mall so they could get their hands on these shoes. no one was hurt. people were arrested near atlanta as people smashed glass windows and tried to rush inside the building. one of them who was arrested was a woman who left two toddlers alone in the car because she was so desperate to get the sneakers. cops used pepper spray on shoppers in seattle to get them under control. the jordans 11's cost 180 bucks but can be resold online for $500 a pair. there is a tradition involved. >> you have to lick the bottom of these. we were automatic here since

1:00 in the morning. >> reporter: i think you should lick the bottom before you wear them not after. nike makes an estimated $1 billion a year on air jordan, impressive since michael jordan hasn't played since 2002. rick: unbelievable. i remember the frenzy when they were out years ago. i guess they are back. >> reporter: they are back in a big way. and it's going to be tougher and tougher to get your hands on them. rick: they on my list. 500 bucks a pop online. rick, thanks. heather: retailers betting on a snow-free weekend to cap a strong holiday shopping season. some big-named stores extending their hours, maybe not a shopper there, since christmas eve falls on a saturday. sales are looking up. top analysts have raised their projections to gains of 3.8%. the day after christmas is one of the biggest shopping day of

the year. rick: new numbers show americans bought slightly new more homes in november. 2011 will likely end up as the worst year ever for sales in history. the kphoplers department reporting new sales rose 1.6% to an annual rate of 350,000. that is less than half the 700,000 new homes that economists say is needed in order to have a healthy economy and housing market. this impact is big, each new home built creates roughly three jobs a year and generates about $90,000 in taxes. heather: just a short time ago president obama signed the two-month extension of the payroll tax cut while urging lawmakers to extend it to a year without any drama, his words, what do you think the chances are of that when they get back to washington next month? steven moore, senior economic writer for the "wall street journal" joins us right now. what does this mean for the economy in 2012, and do you think it's just a band-aid?

we talked to an analyst in the first hour an said the two-month extension is a band-aid. we have to have this year, it has to happen. >> you were just talking about shopping being a contact sport, politics has become a contact sport too. we've had freight a few of the political fracases in the last few weeks in washington. i think the payroll tax extension is a slight positive, not a big positive but a slight positive for the economy. we've had this policy in effect for a year. president obama first signed this a year ago. it didn't create a whole lot of jobs, but i think it's probably a little plus for the economy. but, you know, you talk about some of these str statistics you were talking about, the housing numbers that are kind of lousy, this is still not an economy that with shift into a higher gear. we are stuck in a low gear economy, one to two percent growth with not enough employment to get the unemployed back into jobs. heather: i wanted to talk to you a little more about the numbers.

the gdp that was revised, it's down -- increased at an annual rate of 1.8% in the third quarter of 2011. we also have consumer spending as you mentioned relatively flat, .1% in november. how do we change those numbers? >> well, you know, they are pretty disappointing, aren't they? normally in this stage, help the therbgstage of an economic recovery. i hate to use those words because most americans don't believe there is a recovery. usually you see about 4 or 5% of lost ground from the recession. i think 2012 is looking like another year of 1.5 to 2% growth. it's in the a recession, that is the good news, we at least can now put away worries of a double-dip recession. i think we are still stuck with unemployment in the 8.5 to 9% range. that is dreadful for the 15 million americans that don't have jobs now.

heather: the new unemployment claims are down for the third consecutive week. is it really good news, or have people given up? >> a little bit of both. it is good news that we've seen now these unemployment insurance claims down the most since 2008. that is a very good figure. but it's also true, as you just said, that one reason those numbers are down is people have just given up. they said i'm not looking for a job because there aren't any jobs. i think it's a combination of both, and we are, i think going to see maybe a tick down in unemployment in the next week and a half when the new unemployment numbers go out you're right, a part of that is because people are just saying, i'm not looking for a job any more, because i've been looking for two years and i can't find one. heather: and so take a look at your crystal ball and tell me what do you think needs to happen, and is it really -- we've talked a lot today about, you know, party politics. the folks on capitol hill, if they can't come together and at least appear to be getting along, do we just continue to

see this downward spiral in the economy? >> well, certainly washington isn't helping right now. you're right we've had gridlock in washington now for over a yore where almost nothing got down. one ever the untold stories is that we just completed the budget. that got overshadowed by this tax debate. but you know what, they didn't -- after all the fracas this year they didn't actually cut any spending. all the programs survived. there were very few program terminations. the entitlement programs were not touched at all. it was almost like a lost year of dealing with this enormous deficit. i just think it's very difficult to see a big expansion in the economy when you have so much over spending and so much debt with the u.s. government. this will be the fourth year in a row now that we've had a trillion dollar-plus deficit. that is a pretty dismal number. heather: john mccain had a thing or two to say about that budget. by the way they are not calling it entitlements any more.

i think there is a new word for the. steven moore thank you so much for joining us, we appreciate it, and have a happy holiday. >> merry christmas. we shouldn't call it entitlements because no one is entitled to my one or your money, right. heather: i don't know, some people think they are. >> that is the problem. rick: consumer spending, it doesn't matter whether you were nice, naughty, bought last month or last night, santa may not be delivering your order this christmas. an overwhelming online demand for some of the products has led to products filling orders. dennidennis neal is with the fox business network. it's not coming. >> yes it's not coming. parents are waiting for presents for the kids that will not arrive by christmas morning. so far best buy, less than fully forthcoming about this glitch. they put out this sterile apology last night in language

that was as obtuse and indirect as possible. west buy repents barely. they say because of quote overwhelming demand of hot offers we have even koeurpbtd a situation that affected redemption of less than 1% of our online owners. note, best buy didn't say, hey guys we are late shipping gifts you ordered on thanksgiving, instead it's encountered a situation that has affected redemption. the company further saying that the challenges related to the situation are being addressed and we are very sorry for the problem and we are providing e gift cards to the customers. that was amended from a statement earlier one to stress only two weekends instead of two months and to add the gift cards being paid out. we don't know how many deliveries are delayed. which po products are at risk. how they are going to fix this.

maybe they should hire amazon. it let's outraged customers foment online. one tweet and tweeter captioned it perfectly, thee says the best buy ads showing parents taking on santa. quote, so best buy can't deliver some of its christmas orders, that's what you get for making fun of santa in your tv ads. santa did a better job delivering those gifts i'm tkpwegs for best buy did for some customers this year. stpho: i'm thinkin year. rick: i'm thinking of all the spouses out there that are late on getting gifts, they can blame it on best buy and buy themselves a couple of days. thanks. heather: you've got a bloody drug war claiming thousands of lives, and a police force riddled with corruption, so what do you do? the drastic step that one mexican police department just took. rick: also, new research shows that voters are leaving both

political parties by the millions in the last couple of years. just ahead we'll look at the impact that that will likely have on next year's presidential election. rick: something that president obama said getting a lot of attention, the fallout from comments that he made about his place among the great mountains. >> george washington, father of america protected a fragile large nation, john kennedy averted disaster and helped put man on the womb. who is even greater than them? barack obama. barack obama. went to bank of america. they met with the branch manager and they said, "look, we've got this little hot dog cart,

and it's on a really good corner. let's see if we can buy the property." and the branch manager said, "all right, i will take a chance with the two of you." and we've been loyal to bank of america for the last 71 years. ♪ ♪ [ male announcer ] everyone deserves the gift of a pain free holiday. ♪ this season, discover aleve.

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heather: a fun moment for you here, a christmas tradition at the new york stock exchange. traders gathering on the floor to sing "wait til the sun shines nellie." rick: where are they? heather: they are waiting. they are late but i promise they'll show. they've been doing this every year during the last trading session before christmas since the great depression. the song i'm told is about hoping for better things to come. rick: a payroll tax extension signed today. the gop finally bowing to

presents in your what appears to be a political victory for the president. but is it? karl rove is the former senior adviser and deputy chief of staff to president george w. bush, also a fox news contributor. good to talk to you again karl. >> reporter: thank you. rick: a little extra holiday cheer for the president this year, you think. >> reporter: sure, late bit. let's keep in it context. the president originally wanted a one-year extension, the republicans in the house were for a one-year extension. senate democrats wanted a two month extension. you would think the president would be upset with the senate democrats, but no, he wanted a political gambit and he got it. the president's job approval today is 44%. last week it was 42, the week before that 43, 42 the week before that. i bet you that this total that he got here today by the end of the year the final week of december he's going to be back in the 42, 43 range and these are dismal numbers.

if you go even deeper in the numbers, here is the president's job approval on the economy and the latest abc "washington post" poll. 41 aeu professor, 56 disaeu professor. creating jobs 39-556789 and the strongly approves are 13, and the strongly disapproves are 33. president not in good shape. he wants to go out to hawaii with a little bit of wind at his back and he's going to get it but the wind ain't going to last very long. rick: you don't think that eupl bold dense hieupl embolden him. >> he went out of his way to say this isn't a political victory for either political party. we need to get the people's business done. he realizes if he looks like he's playing two political in this it will be to his disadvantage. the problem is he looks political about this. he wanted a one year extension,

he settled for a month-month extension. and he castigated the people in favor of the one-year extension, the house republicans. better for the republicans to have lost on this particular battle and the house now, because it will make them smarter after the first of the year, and whatever advantage the president has on this. whatever small advantage is going to be washed away by the holidays as people turn to presents and social gatherings and family. rick: so, the general consensus, karl is that speaker boehner was the big looser this week. i'm guessing maybe you think he's going to be okay. how does he come out of this? >> reporter: i think he's going to be okay. i know we like going out there and saying who is up and who down. i think the speaker retains respect from the vast majority of the people in his caucus. the voices that we have heard are in no place to mount any kind of a cue or leadership attempt. the speaker has done a masterful

job in the last year of dealing with president obama, who is completely about politics and not about getting substantive achievements for the country. this has been a wasted year for the great issues that face america, our crumbling tax code, our lack of economic progress, the absence of prosperity, all of these things, the coming problem with entitlements, all these things we could have been dealing with this year with strong presidential leadership, instead we have a president that is intent on being campaigner in chief not commander-in-chief. rick: i want to have you about your new advertisement and the gop field. we'll take a quick break and be right back with more and karl rove. ol! you can put a force field on him and be invisible! [ child 2 ] i call first player. no. i already called it. [ dad ] nobody's playing anything until after we get our homework done. thank you. hello? test drive's not over yet. [ male announcer ] it's practically yours. [ louder ] hello? but we still need your signature. right now during sign then drive,

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rick: new fallout following

remarks president obama made to cbs news regarding his achievements in office so far. he said his accomplishments would match or surpass any administration in u.s. history except for three. the american crossroads group thought that deserved a little attention. take a look. >> yes, next to lincoln, roosevelt stands barack obama, america's fourth greatest president. >> you know every place is barack obama country once barack obama has been there. >> 13 million out of work, 15 trillion in debt. and unemployment over 8%. rick: karl rove is the former senior adviser and deputy chief of staff to george w. bush. i knew somebody was going to come out with something real fast. you guys beat everyone else to the punch. he handed a little early christmas present to whoever

ends up ring against him. this is a political ad that writes itself isn't it? >> it really is. staoefr convenient law did a great job with this. the ceo of american crossroads. the president, what a stunning moment of arrogance. my legislative and foreign policy accomplishments are anybody else except maybe these three presidents? i mean what happened to thomas jefferson? louisiana purchase doubled the size of the united states. what happened to andrew jackson who got rid of the debt and created a surplus? you know, what happened to theodore rows volt with all those food laws, food safety laws and conservation measures. what happened to harry truman, the marshal plan nor european confronted communism. all these people pale in significance in the mind of barack obama, one person himself. this is an amazing thing. rick: we had senator santorum on the program a little while ago. polls out of iowa show this is a

three-man race heading into the caucuses on january 3rd. how is this shaping up in your view? >> well i think it is a three-person race but there will be four tickets punched out o of iowa. traditionally if you're the first top four coming out of iowa you go on from there. paul is likely to take it, romney and newt gingrich, who is next is it rick perry who is spending a vast amount of money, or rick santorum who has won a key endorsement. is it michelle bachmann who has won the strong poll. there will be a very hot and heavy campaign here in the last few days. we will have a hiatus on television ads here for a couple of days, then they'll start up again next week. we will have a hiatus on campaigning then it will start up again next week. most of what is going to happen between now and eleven days from now when people vote in iowa, the conversation that is taking place over the family dinner table, or at social gatherings,

or over the water cooler, that is what is really going to have an impact here in the next eleven days. rick: karl rove always good to talk to you. best wishes to you and your family for a very merry christmas. >> thank you so much. merry christmas to you and yours kwrao new research showing that since 2008 americans are quitting the democratic and republican parties by the millions. in three minutes we'll take a look at what this could mean in 2012. rick: move over black friday, look at what is causing retail mayhem across the country. heather: it maybe the ultimate in buyers remorse. two-thirds of the people would take back their vote for a high-speed rail project. we are live in california.

rick: a high-speed rail project

fighting for its survival in the golden state, not even off the ground and it's already running billions of dollars over budget. now critics are demanding a second look and some are urging the state to scrap it all together. william la jeunesse following us for us. he's live in l.a. hi, william. >> reporter: rick, you know this is the holy grail of public infrastructure the single largest expenditure of money ever. this bullet train is mired in thoughts over cost, environmental impact, design and unrealistic sales pitches. but remember it's not just california, most of the cost will be paid for by all u.s. taxpayers. >> our goal is to give 80% of americans access to high-speed rail. >> reporter: yet less than a year after that speech the president's bullet train project looks more like a runaway engine. >> it is not viable, it is not the best use of tax dollars, and especially when you're borrowing the money to do it. >> reporter: republican kevin mccarthy joins other fiscal

conservatives hoping to derail the federal money train. >> what fire stations, what police officers, what schools are we going too close, to continue to build a train that will probably never be finished. >> we need to move forward on this project because the costs of doing nothing are far greater -- >> reporter: california residents voted information owe lee in 2008 to issue 9 billion in ponds to help pay for the project, with the popl the promise it would create millions of jobs. now they are saying it's a boo a boondoggle. figures show more people riding california bullet trains than all americans using amtrak. a price increase from 38 to $98 billion. travel times that are longer and ticket prices higher than airplanes which could mean taxpayer subsidies. >> costs have gone up. the numbers don't lie.

every time you look at this more the worse it looks. >> reporter: now when the president took office there were ten corridors that were identified for high-speed rail, rick. all of them have basically dropped out except for california. not a single spayed of dirt has been moved for this and republicans want this aeutd. they believe it will show or prove that this is a bad public investment. back to you. rick: william thanks. heather: we are getting to brand-new video of some violent protests at an occupy camp in albany. take a look at this. [chanting] that is cellphone footage capturing a confrontation after police took the last tent away from the encampment. protestors refusing to go, they linked arms and formed a human chain. cops reportedly used pepper

spray to disperse them and several people were arrested. rick: a mass firing of one city's entire police force, more than a thousand officers laid off in vera cruz, mexico. the navy is now in control of that port city and the government is hoping that the move will help ou root out corruption. 46,000 people have been killed as a result of the drug war. heather: well, you know, the political parties are switching hands, and it's happening so at a rate that has both republicans and democrats concerned. dee dee binky is standing by and she has a little bit of response on this for us. dee dee, your a republican strategist. we don't have our democratic strategist on board. we want to talk about how this is affecting both parties. because clearly voters are not happy with either. dee dee, are you there?

>> i'm here, it's tara. heather: i'm sorry i was told dee dee. >> no worry. you're exactly right. voters are expressing frustration with both parties. we have seen an exodus from both parties and the democrats have seen a large exodus as well. the issue though is there is a silver lining and they have an advantage in that there are 42 million registered democratic voters compared to 30 million registered republican voters. it may be too early for republicans to celebrate over the fact that some democrats have defected. given the fact also that they've defected to the independent party, which is a trend we've actually seen for a while, and i think that though the issue and the challenge for democrats is going to be getting those 42 million overwhelming majority of those people to the poles

given the economic environment we're in, that will be the challenge the democrats confront. heather: 25 of 28 states, democrats seeing a drop in numbers. republicans in 21 states seeing a drop, but independents picking up numbers in 18 states. so give me, as our democratic strategist i should clarify, dee dee was going to be our republican. >> i think the silver lining is democrats have an advantage in terms of registration. to reiterate that that will be an advantage for democrats. they have to capitalize on that registration advantage. i do think, though, that republicans have to be very careful, although they have not lost as many voters as democrats have, they are definitely not lighting the world on fire these days. if you look at the house republicans, the house gop they did themselves a major disservice with this debacle over the payroll tax cut, where

basically in the past republic republicans haven't met a tax cut that they didn't like, annette speaker boehner was looking for every excuse until he was backed into a corner not to pass a payroll tax cut that affected 160 million americans at a time when people can certainly use some of their money back. it's issues like that and that kind of devisiveness that is turning a lot of people off. heather: guess who is here to join us with the other side, just in time. dee dee binky as promised. respond to that and give me the republican silver lining in all of this. >> well i will tell you that people right now are just so unhappy with washington. and it's so nice that we are going into christmas, the holiday season, so perhaps we can take a look at what we really need to be thinking about, and that is working together, trying to have good policy, good politics for our country, and unfortunately we've had a rough time in washington. you know the parties need to be very, very careful about how to proceed and how we proceed, actually in 2012, because right

now it is toxic in washington. people think politics, they think politicians, they think anything associated with these parties is bad, so we've got to be very careful about our mission and what we do to reach out to those disinch chanted sroebgs, which idisenchanted folks. newt gingrich is making fun of moderate mitt right now but moderate mitt is probably the key to our success. heather: this has given rise to ross pirot. ralph nader. we see ron paul's numbers increases. who do you think will benefit from this this time around in 2012. is there anyone that can jump on these disenfranchised voters and make a move? >> i think it's mitt romney, he's our best hope to reach out to the moderates, the independents. i'm more on the right but i do

know we have to beat barack obama. he's been a terrible president. certainly not the fourth best, i would say probably the worst. we have to make absolutely sure we win in november, and mitt romney is the key there. we can't have someone who only appeals to the right. >> i think peuz i president obama is going to have to work very hard to gain support because of the political process. what the president needs to do and continue to do more aggressively is to call the republicans out, call them out when they try to obstruct things. i think the whole payroll tax cut debacle has basically shown what i've said for a longtime that republicans have been trying at every turn to stop the president from moving his economic policies forward. what they have done has been devisive because the president -- the big key for president in 2008 was people felt he could unite the country. what republicans have consistently tried to do was try to paint him as someone who is devisive because it's in their

interests to take that away from him, to take that issue away from him, the uniter, the great uniter issue. >> for two and a half years he had that democrat house and senate and he still didn't get anything done. he's been a failed president with failed policies. >> that is not true at all. >> we need new leadership. and the american people are tired of d.c. and he is part of it. d.c. is the pits. >> we were losing 750,000 jobs a month when president obama came in. we have added 2.9 million jobs that is certainly progress. heather: dee dee you get the last word. >> merry christmas we need to give a big gift to the american people, a new president. heather: i almost like ending it on d.c. is the pits. thank you for joining us, and merry christmas to both of you. rick: it took us a little while to get them on the camera

together, once we did entertainment for you. it's one of the best-selling baby formulas in the country. it's being pulled off the store shelves all across the country. what you need to know about enfamil. we'll have that for you after the break. heather: giving, giving, giving way to tearing and tackling, how a pair of shoes caused chaos coast to coast. >> you see those? you've got to lick the bottom of these. you've got to lick the bottom of these. see, we was out here since 1:00 in the morning. just one phillips' colon health probiotic cap a day helps defends against occasional constipation, diarrhea, gas and bloating. with the strains of good bacteria

to help balance your colon. you had me at "probiotic." [ female announcer ] phillips' colon health. ♪ in her eyes... the world is never too big. in his...the weather should never keep you inside. ♪ because they see no limits, there's eukanuba nutrition designed to help their body go as far as their mind wants to.

eukanuba. extraordinary nutrition for extraordinary beings. see the difference in 28 days or your money back. with less chronic low back pain. imagine living your life with less chronic osteoarthritis pain. imagine you, with less pain. cymbalta can help. cymbalta is a non-narcotic treatment that's fda-approved to manage chronic musculoskeletal pain. one pill a day, every day, can help reduce this pain. tell your doctor right away if your mood worsens, you have unusual changes in mood or behavior or thoughts of suicide. antidepressants can increase these in children, teens, and young adults. cymbalta is not approved for children under 18. people taking maois or thioridazine or with uncontrolled glaucoma should not take cymbalta. taking it with nsaid pain relievers, aspirin, or blood thinners may increase bleeding risk. severe liver problems, some fatal, were reported. signs include abdominal pain and yellowing of the skin or eyes. talk with your doctor about your medicines, including those for migraine, or if you have high fever, confusion and stiff muscles, to address a possible life-threatening condition.

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heather: new video for you of the aftermath of a possible tornado in georgia. high winds, flying debris injuring seven people. the powerful storm was tearing apart homes, knocking out power to an estimated 19,000 customers. people in the area don't even know what hit them. >> at the very end down here, the end section of the building, i guess that would be the southeast section of the building, it came out. i don't know if it was straight line wind or tornado, whatever the situation was i don't know. >> the door got blown in. there is some glass flying around, but everybody was okay in there and nobody was hurt. heather: straight-line winds just as scary and devastating. the national weather service is in gordon county. they are determining whether a tornado touched down. rick: one of the nation's top-selling baby formulas being pulled off shelves after reports of a newborn dying and another one getting sick after taking it.

the government has not ordered a recall yet of the 12.5-ounce cans of enfamil powder. wal-mart has already pulled the batch from more than 3,000 of its stores. enfail counts for 80% of baby formula sold. the company says it's highly confident in the safety and quality of our products, and the rigorous testing we put them through. we are working with health authorities to identify the source or cause of this infant's infection. dr. manny alvarez is a member of our fox a team. we don't even know at this point if it was the baby formula that caused this. right? >> absolutely. the bacteria found is a bacteria that you typically see in contaminated foods. it has been shown in cases of baby formula before. it's very deadly to infants, you know, 40 to 80% with real

infection with this bacteria end up in death, especially with the little babies. we don't know. this is a precaution wal-mart and a lot of other stores took in taking out this formula. rick: smart idea? >> it's a very smart idea. there have been cases in the past with a whole contamination of baby formula a huge recall by the manufacturers. i applaud wal-mart and many other stores from doing this. parents are going to get all panicky. look, the jury is still out, this is one case. the department of health is not sure exactly whether it was the formulation itself or in the preparation. a lot of babies get sick when you prepare, especially powered milk. you have to make sure that the water is sterile, you have to make sure that the bottle is sterbl. if you fail in that process that also contaminates the florida. and a lot of parents, and i've seen this where they really just prepare formula, they leave it out, they don't necessarily

think that it has to be refrigerated after it's been repaired. all those steps can theoretically contaminate a baby formula and therefore that could be the reason for this baby's death. we'll know more as time goes by. right now i would say don't use the enfamil product until further notice. use something alternatively. rick: if you have it in your home, don't use it. >> don't throw it out. keep is handy, this is an expensive product. i would wait to see exactly hoff all the investigation is done to find out whether indeed it was a manufacturing problem, and in that case you would have to throw out your baby formula. but until then i would not do anything, just change to something else. rick: and make sure, you mentioned this before, that you are sterilizing properly all the different things. the preparation we saw in that videotape, the woman scooping the powder, even the scoop could potentially be contaminated. >> powdered milk is not sterile. it's a product that gets manufactured, it's put in a

can. through the whole preparation of mixing it in you have to have the proper steps and people sometimes don't do this. that's why this could be a fluke and not really a contaminated product. rick: while this is being tested. i think this will be a little while until we find out definitively whether it's this baby powder, formula that is the cause -- >> we know so far that the batch of this formula was tested and they did not find any bacteria in the batch of the infant formula that this infant was exposed to. so that is still good news. but there will be a very thorough investigation and they'll get down to even the dna printing of the bacteria to make sure it's one source and they'll find out exactly what is going on. rick: good reason to try breastfeeding for any new mother. >> that's what i put in my notes. this tells you if you can try to consider breastfeeding, it's the most natural and healthiest way to feed an infant. rick: thank you very much for coming on, we'll keep following the story all the best to you. >> merry christmas. rick: merry christmas.

heather: and christmas by the way in case you're counting is just the day after tomorrow. it's about more than gifts, though, it's when christians mark the birth of jesus christ, but with no way to prove that he was actually born on the 25th, we'll take a look at how the day came to be so important. ♪ ♪ [singing] ion, depressed mood and suicidal thoughts or actions while taking or after stopping chantix. if you notice any of these, stop taking chantix and call your doctor right away. tell your doctor about any history of depression or other mental health problems,

which could get worse while taking chantix. don't take chantix if you've had a serious allergic or skin reactioto it. if you develop these, stop taking chantix and see your doctor right away as some can be life-threatening. if you have a history of heart orlood vessel problems, tell your doctor if you have new or worse symptoms. get medical help right away if you have symptoms of a heart attack. use caution when driving or operating machinery. common side effects include nausea, trouble sleeping and unusual dreams. my inspiration for quitting were my sons. they were my little cheering squad. [ laughs ] [ male announcer ] ask your doctor if chantix is right for you.

rick: fierce winds sweeping through southern california for a second day, today making holiday driving treacherous. the high winds packing enough punch to pull down trees and cause power outages, even topple

trucks. so far no reports of any serious injuries, despite the damage forecasters say that the winds are not as bad as they were last month when they reached hurricane strength. heather: we are just two days away from christmas. the holiday celebrating the birth of jesus christ. many theologians say he wasn't even born in december and there is no way to prove when he was born. so how did december 25th become such an important day for christians? lauren green takes a look at two theories. >> reporter: for centuries christians have celebrated the birth of jesus on december 25th. conventional wisdom holds that it replaced paying began festivals. >> they were already celebrating th the pagan holidays. it was celebrated with gifts and

songs and whe whes chestnuts on an object fire. they usurped the traditions and called it their own. >> reporter: some scholars disagree. >> this a difficult theory to hold. in the third and fourth centuries they were not receptive to pagan festivals. they denounced everything pagan. i don't think that theory is plausible. >> reporter: the early church focused on his death and resurrection as the defining moat of his faith. >> here is the move that the early church made. it believed that jesus was conceived on the same day that he was crucified, so the belief was that he was conceived on the 14th or 15th, according to

the hebrew calendar. translated he was conceived on march 25th according to the roman calendar. fast forward nine months, and we have the date of december 25th. >> reporter: it's a settled tradition but not a confirmed fact. what is certain, christmas has become commercialized the birth of jesus a sidebar. it's not what the early church fathers intended. >> it was important for bub louisianbiblical reasons to celebrate the birth of jesus christ. >> reporter: whether december 25th or some other day the fact is jesus was born, and for 2,000 years christians have celebrated. merry christmas in new york, lauren green, fox news. heather: and other theologians say there are khrao clues i clues in the bible that say jesus was actually born in the fall. rick: we are just eight days

away until new years, looking a little beyond christmas now. do you know what you're doing new year's eve? spend us with us. megyn kelly and bill hemmer together again hosting the all person new year. we have musical guest trace atkins. big and rich will be along and the cast of the tony-award nominated show rock of ages which is a favorite of our senior producer time lowell. the whole show kicks off 11pm eastern time right here. heather: i heard they are making a movie. rick: heather: a nine-year-old becomes the designated driver for a drunk man. the man admitting to court he made his daughter drive the car while he was drunk. more on that case coming up.

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